


Treasures of Eternity

by Fire_Drifter



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V, Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga), Yu-Gi-Oh! GX, Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal
Genre: Duel Monsters Anime, Post-Ceremonial Duel, Post-Graduation, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-02
Updated: 2021-02-08
Packaged: 2021-03-13 06:07:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,789
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29148696
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fire_Drifter/pseuds/Fire_Drifter
Summary: Ever since news of Jaiden Yuki's defeat of the King of Game's deck by a copycat duelist, the young Slier Red has unknowingly put a bulls-eye on his back for other duelists to challenge him. Now, Jaiden has come back to Academy Island for a class reunion, while a special tournament is being hosted by the school with duelist champions and rookies alike coming to attend. Among these duelists is Matthias Cruz: the new international champion, and the one person who harbors the deepest grudge against Jaiden for his actions...Fate will bring them together on the battlefield, where events will spiral out of control, time and space will be fractured...Then, the fate of the world will now hinge on Matthias' choices, and ability to forgive...But Matthias, being a full-blown rageaholic, along with his troubled past that he can't seem to let go of is not going to make this easy...
Kudos: 1





	1. Chapter 1

**_Prologue_ **

**_As you all know, in the years of Ancient Egypt, the pharaoh, Atem, locked away the power of the shadow games in the millennium items for all eternity. But when our hero, Yugi Moto, discovered the secret of the millennium puzzle, 5,000 years later, he unknowingly released the power of the other items as well. He discovered that when Pegasus and Bakura attacked him and his friends at Duelist Kingdom, and when he fought Marik Ishtar at Battle city. Not to mention stopping Dartz and the mighty Leviathan. But they aren't the only people that posses millennium items and magic. For soon, in this chapter of the shadows' rebirth, a new character with great and unexploited power, will appear. He will make himself known to the world. The question is, will he bring order to the shadows, or reign chaos over all?_ **

Chapter 1

“Yugi, where are you?! What's taking you so long?” Joey hollered to his friend upstairs. “We only got fifteen minutes! Any longer than that, and we'll miss the train for the Neo-GX tournament!”

“I'm coming, Joey! Just needed to find a couple cards!” The young king of games was excited as he hurried down the stairs of his home, the local card shop. This tournament was going to have the best of the best duelists, and with Joey dueling, and the rest of his friends helping him on, this was going to be an event for the ages, rem embed by all in the game. Finally, he thought. A regular tournament! No evil demented villains, no psychopaths with plans for world domination. Just a regular, fun, worry-free tournament, where he could relax and have fun.

It is a shame that our hero's prediction was completely wrong.

Our mystery character, also bound for the Neo-GX tournament, was at the domino train station waiting for his own two close friends.

“Man, where are they?” He muttered. “They said they'd be here at ten o'clock sharp. They're late.”

“Hey!” A voice said behind him in a gruff tone. “Duel me if you got the guts!”

“Hi Korben,” The mystery character said.

“How'd you know it was me?” Korben whined in his normal voice.

“Because, one: you're the only one that does that to me. Two: you gave yourself away, like last time. And three: you've tried it a hundred times, so I know it’s you. Where's Derek?”

“Right here, Matthias.” A serious voice said from behind a pillar, submerged in the shadows.

“Derek, come on! Step into view! A little sunlight's not going to kill you!” Matthias snapped. Sometimes he wondered why he hung out with this paranoid Gothic, not to mention Korben the joker. But, as people say, you can't choose your friends. On the bright side, he, Korben, and Derek were going to own this tournament. After all, they were part of the “best of the best.” But soon, he would be at Academy Island, dueling in the Neo-GX tournament, and proving it. He could imagine it right now….

Yugi and Joey were making a sprint for the train station. If they didn't get there soon, they would miss the train to the dock! And then the cruise liner to Academy Island! But as they were nearing the platform, the train was getting ready to leave!

“Hurry, Yugi! The train's pulling out!” Joey called out to his friend, who was beginning to trail behind. But from what it looked like, Yugi was not going to get there in time! The train began to depart. Joey was on, but Yugi wasn't! The door closed right in his face. Joey thought fast, then ran to the back of the train, to try and catch Yugi when the train went by.

Yugi was running with the train, trying to find a way on before it overtook him. Then, at the end of the train, someone grabbed his hand, and pulled him onboard. Yugi was trying to catch his breath.

“Whew! Thanks, Joey….” He began.

But when he looked up, It wasn't Joey. Instead, it was a complete stranger. A guy in his late teens. He wore a gray jacket, a t-shirt underneath the jacket, blue jeans, and skate shoes. But that wasn't what gave Yugi chills. There was something about this teenager that seemed to be off about him. That rubbed Yugi the wrong way.

But in the end, he seemed friendly enough. “Hey, don’t worry about it. It wouldn’t be a proper tourney without the King of Games, you know!” The stranger said, smiling.

And he walked back into the passenger car, leaving our hero with these thoughts.

Even though he just saved Yugi Moto from being left behind, Matthias left him at the back of the train. Still, he couldn't help but feel a tad sorry for the King of Games. It must be hard, with all the publicity, the cameras, the news crews chasing you wherever you went….

But the most difficult thing was probably trying to escape a crowd of rival duelists. It actually seemed funny, thinking about it. He nearly laughed, something he had not done in six years….

“YUGI!!” He heard someone yell. He immediately looked up, and saw a charging Joey Wheeler rampaging down the aisle! Matthias instantly dived into an empty seat, to prevent from being trampled over. Then, when Joey passed, Matthias actually began to go into a laughing fit.

“Now that was a close call,” Matthias thought out loud as he laughed happily.

Joey was running top speed down the aisle, almost knocking down a guy in a jacket. He practically speed-sprinted down the aisle like an Olympics runner, not stopping for anything. If Yugi missed the train, then all their plans for the tourney would be ruined! They wouldn't be able to duel together in the tournament! He began to sprint faster than he thought he could. He was nearly on the verge of panic! When Joey finally reached the last car, he saw Yugi standing in the aisle.

“Yugi!” Joey cried. “You made it! But how?”

“You wouldn't believe me if I told you….” Yugi sighed.

“Well, Tell me anyway.” Joey pestered.

Yugi looked up. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah. So tell me what happened!”

“Ok. Well, when I was running….”

“So you saved the soon-to-be former King of Games from missing the train. Big deal.” Derek rolled his eyes. “You should've left him.”

“Well, I thought I'd be nice for once.” Matthias retorted. “Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to catch some Z's before we get to the Dock.” And with that, he reclined his seat and dozed off.


	2. Chapter 2

Meanwhile, on Academy Island, there was a big duel going on, involving Bob, one of Matthias's friends. He was a Ra Yellow student in the academy. Not the best, but definitely not the worst, either.

Bob thought hard as he looked at the cards in his hand. Then at the field. Jaiden had his Elemental Hero Tempest and Wild edge on the field and no cards face down, along with Fusion Gate. Bob had his Red Eyes Black Dragon, along with two faces down traps. It was his turn.

“Well, Jaiden, it's been fun, but you lose.” Bob said.

“Dream on!” Jaiden boasted. "Your Red Eyes can't defeat my Tempest!"

"It doesn't need to." Bob smiled. "I ACTIVATE THE MAGIC CARD RAIGEKI!"

"What?!" Jaiden gapsed. “Raigeki?!”

"You better believe it! Your Tempest may not be beaten in battle, but it's a different story for magic and trap cards! And this one destroys every monster on your field!" With that said, the magic of Raigeki activated, and flaming bolts of lightning rained down from the

top of the stadium, sweeping across the playing field. Tempest and Wildedge were practically vaporized from the blast. Jaiden stood his ground.

"I still have more life points, and more than enough to withstand your Red Eyes' attack."

"But this card changes all that, too!" Bob said. "And thanks to you, I can summon it! You see, all this card needs is a fusion of five dragon-type monsters! And I have just the five to fuse!"

Bob then sacrificed a Luster Dragon, Spear Dragon, Komori Dragon and his Hirozanru, along with his Red Eyes, taking advantage of Jaiden's Fusion gate card.

"Now I can summon the FIVE GOD DRAGON!!!" And what a summoning it was! There was a searing fire blast from the sacrifice. Then, it appeared. The Five God Dragon in all it's glory. Poised, and prepared, ready to attack. The student's went wild, screaming and cheering. Jaiden was completely dumbstruck. In the crowd, Bastion nearly fell out of his seat! Syrus hid behind Chumley. Alexis Nearly fainted. Not even Zane, who had come to the academy with Jaiden and the others for a reunion, could resist watching this! The Five God Dragon made a roar like thunder, adding to the suspense.

"Sick 'em." Bob snapped his fingers.

Back on the train, everything was going well. Matthias had woken up from his nap, and they were nearing the Dock.

“We're almost there!” Korben said.

“This is going to be fun!” Derek snickered.

Finally, Matthias thought. The time has come. The time to show Me and my friends belong with the best of the best! I won't let anything, or anyone gets in our way to the top. We will finally get some respect! The respect we deserve….

“Matthias, quit daydreaming. We're at the Dock.” Korben said.

“Oh! Right.” He got up as the train stopped. They took their bags and got off the train. When they got to the dock, they turned in their cruiser tickets, and boarded the carnival cruise-liner destined for Academy island. The weird coincidence was Matt and his friends were in separate rooms in first class. And even weirder, Matthias's room was right next to Yugo's! He found that out when he bumped into Yugi when they were going to their rooms. But no fighting words were exchanged, unless you count "excuse" and "me" as fighting words. The fact that they were next door bothered Matthias though. Was this a coincidence, or was it fate? He wondered. It made him uneasy for the whole overnight trip.

Matthias tried to get some sleep, but it was futile. His mind was in overdrive. He finally sat up on the bed in his room, got up, then walked through the ship out to the top deck. There was someone laying on the deck, looking exhausted. He was surrounded by a crowd, murmuring.

That someone was Derek! It looked as if he'd lost a duel, since he still had his duel disk on. Matthias ran over to Derek.

“Who's responsible for this?!” Matthias snapped.

Then, he saw a familiar Seto Kaiba.

“Nobody did anything, unless you count him losing to me in a duel. He was so kind as to help me test my latest Solid-Vision system prototype.”

“Figures. Seto Kaiba. You're as much a snake as ever.” Matthias sneered, putting on his own duel disk.

“Don't make me kick you off the boat, Matthias. My company is providing for half of this tournament.” Kaiba warned.

“And who's providing for the other half?” Matthias challenged.

Kaiba went silent.

“Did you forget already?” Matthias asked, a taunt in his voice.

Kaiba recovered. “Does it matter?”

“I'm sure it does to many people.” Matthias countered again.

Kaiba began to walk away, but Korben stopped him.

“Isn't running away from a challenge against the rules?”

“Yes. It is.” Kaiba growled.

“Then you're breaking them Kaiba, because I challenge you to a duel! Right here, right now, giving me an opportunity to showcase one of my new cards, and a prize for winning the international Duel Monsters' cup: The fifth Blue Eyes White Dragon!” Matthias activated his duel disk and slid his deck into the slot.

Bob stood on Academy island's pier, watching the sunset.

He was proud and happy that he had tied with Jaiden. He was the top in his class back in the day. If Bob kept dueling like this, he would be moved up to Obelisk Blue.

He knew that Matthias and his friends were coming to academy island sometime. When they did, they would share all the new strategies they made for their decks, and everything they had learned. But this was also his last year at Duel Academy, and he didn't want to leave. Especially with his new teachers that started this year. How would life be without hearing his teacher’s advice on dueling? Without his more memorable classmates’ carefree personalities and humor? Without his many rivals’ harsh chastising insults? He didn't know how things would be when he left, but he knew he would miss everyone. Then, he heard some explosions.

And saw the cruise liner heading to the dock.

“And now I activate two copies of BAZOOKA!!! You take 1,600 points of damage!! And thanks to Rapid-fire Magician's Effect, you take 800 more points of damage!” Matthias held up both Magic cards as meteors flew from the sky. Kaiba shielded himself from the flaming rocks with his arms. He was now down to 3,500 life points. Matthias was still at full, thanks to his Column Wishes trap card.

“You should've destroyed my Alabaman last turn!” Kaiba laughed. “Because now I can summon the Blue Eyes White Dragon! Attack his Rapid-fire Magician with white lightning!” Then, the destructive dragon fired its white lightning directly at Matthias's magician.

“Big mistake, Kaiba! I activate my trap card, Magic Cylinder! And since you've dueled Yugi before, you should know what this does. But I'll refresh your memory, anyway. When an enemy monster attacks, Magic Cylinder negates it and diverts the attack to the attacking monster's owner as damage!” Then, the Cylinder appeared, absorbed the attack, and redirected the blast of white lightning back to Kaiba! He screamed in pain as he was hit by the white lightning. Then, it stopped. Kaiba tried to catch his breath.

“I…. Play two cards face down and…. End my turn.”

“Good!” Matthias said. “Now, Time to fry me some Dragon! I sacrifice my second monster, Dark Magician to bring forth the DARK ERADICATOR WARLOCK!! And you should know his effect too! Every spell played from now on will give you 1,000 points of damage per spell STRAIGHT TO YOU!” The Dark Warlock then appeared on the field, confident and ready.

“And I'm not done there! Next I activate the LIGHTNING VORTEX MAGIC CARD! All I need to do is discard one card in my hand to destroy every monster on your field! Plus, you take 1,000 points of damage thanks to Dark Eradicator Warlock’s effect!” The warlock raised his staff, and bolts of lightning shot from it and rained down from the sky, striking Kaiba and his Blue Eyes. The Dragon was vaporized on the spot!

“Now I activate Monster Reborn, to deal 1,000 more points of damage and bring back you old friend, who will now be your enemy…. Your BLUE EYES WHITE DRAGON!!”

“No! Impossible!!” Kaiba gasped.

“Kaiba, you've been schooled! BLUE EYES, ATTACK!!!”

And with that, the Dragon launched its attack. Kaaba's life points dropped to zero. Kaiba collapsed on his knees. He couldn't believe it. He had lost…. To the international champion.

Though Kaiba had to admit, this upstart did have some skills. He lived up to his title, at least.

Yugi couldn't believe his eyes! That guy on the train had just beaten Kaiba! No sweat! Not only that, but he had powerful cards, and a well-constructed deck! Joey was also stunned by this duelist's skill and power! At first, everyone just stared. Then, the other duelist came up to meet him, along with someone else.

"Wow! Nice work, Matt! You gave him the boot, and in seven turns!" The first said.

"So what?" Began the second, dusting himself off from his earlier duel with Kaiba. "Anyone can beat that over-rated upstart."

"Well, I didn't see you beat him in your duel." The first sassed.

"Your point is?"

"Your point is nothing!" Matthias snapped. "Now forget the argument and get your bags ready. We're at our destination. It's time for the Neo-GX tournament… It’s time for us to take the world by storm!"

He pointed to the bow of the ship as Academy island came into view.

Bob began to run away from the pier to get Brittany and Alex. They were here! At long last, they were here! Bob remembered the E-mail they sent to him, The E-mail said they would arrive on a boat, but not on a cruise liner! This was awesome! Finally, they would be here, after three years of only seeing their faces through video feeds! And he hoped that they would have their best of luck in the Neo-GX tournament.

Little did he know they would all need it.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

As Yugi, Matthias, and all the other duelists got off the cruise liner, they were greeted by the pearl-white pier and lighthouse of Academy Island. This was Yugi's first time seeing the island up-close. It was amazing. The main school building itself had the appearance of some sort of ruin. It must have been based off a similar structure. Matthias, however, was not surprised He had been there before, when he had to leave behind Alex, Brittany, and Bob. Three more friends in his group besides Derek and Korben. Soon, all of them would be reunited, and just in time for the tournament. However, when they got off the boat, they saw a familiar figure.

Maximillion Pegasus himself.

"Ah, Yugi boy! Hello again! By the way the way, no hard feelings about Duelist Kingdom? And I see the new International Champion is here as well, eh, Mattie boy?"

"Greeting, Pegasus." Matthias said, smiling. “I look forward to the tournament.”

"Matthias!" A familiar voice yelled. It was Alex, Brittany, and Bob. They were running down the pier to greet him.

"Al, How've you been?" Matthias said. "It's been a long time!"

"It sure has!" Alex said, slapping Matthias a high-five.

"Hey, don't forget me!" Bob said.

"Yeah, we missed you guys!" Brittany said.

"Family reunion..." Derek said nonchalantly.

"Bob! Try any of the new pranks I emailed?" Korben asked.

"A couple..." Bob answered.

Matthias then noticed three people running up to them. One was in a old Slifer red blazer, another in a Obelisk blue blazer, the lowest and highest classes in duel academy, and one was in a suit. The Slifer duelist had brown hair, and an obvious look of overconfidence in his eyes. Matthias had heard of this duelist. It was Jaiden Yuki.

"Wow!" Jaiden said. "It's really him!"

"And the international champion, too!" The Obelisk student said. This student was very short, about Yugi's size, and had turquoise hair, and wore glasses. The third however, was plump and had black hair and eyes. He was stricken in awe.

"Great..." Derek muttured. "The disgraces are here..." However, Matthias remained silent, anger and agitation building up in him. This was the guy that beat Yugi’s deck when it was here?!

"Hi! I'm Jaiden Yuki. You're Yugi Moto?" Jaiden asked.

"...Yeah." Yugi answered. “...I hear you are the guy that out-dueled my old deck...

“Yep! That’s me!” Jaiden said proudly. “No offense, but I slaughtered it...”

"Really?" Matthias said, losing his temperament. "Then let’s see you slaughter some of this!" He got out his duel disk. "Now prepare yourself, Slifer Red, because as the king of games says, IT'S TIME TO DUEL!!!" And with that, he slid his deck into the disk.

“Well, okay!” Jaiden said, cocky as he activated his own duel disk and inserted his own deck of cards. “Get your game on, champ!”

“Oh, goody!” Pegasus said. “A little bad-blood exhibition match to spice things up… Not a bad evening.” He turned to the crowd on the dock. “Make room! Make room!”

Kaiba couldn't believe what he was seeing! The International champion was getting ready to crush a Slifer red! And it was just starting! Though Kaiba was entertained by this sudden challenge, he now knew that the international champion needed to work on strengthening his temperament.

"I’ll take the first turn, thank you very much!" Matthias said. He drew a card.

"I summon the Blast Magicain in attack mode! Next I will activate the Terraforming magic card! This card allows me to bring out a Field spell from my deck!" He got his deck, searched through it, found his card, shuffled, and put the deck back into the disk. "And to finish my turn, I set two cards face-down. Now let's see what you're made of, Jaiden!"

"Alright! Here I go!" Jaiden drew his card. "Sweet! I activate Fusion Gate! This allows me to summon fusion monsters without using Polymerization! Next, I will use fusion gate to summon Elemental Hero Flame Wingman!"

"Actually, no you don't!" Matthias interrupted. "Reveal trap! Bottomless trap hole! Flame Wingman is destroyed, and removed from play for the game!" The trap hole then appeared and enveloped Jaiden’s Flame Wingman! Jaiden was shocked.

"Are you done?" Matthias asked.

"...I'm done." Jaiden said.

"Good. To be blunt, I expected more from the Academy’s so-called red ace! What a complete waste of an opening move..." Matthias drew his card. "Now to teach you a few things you won’t learn from a classroom… I activate the Field spell, Yami! Which replaces your Fusion Gate!" Matthias played the field spell card, as it replaced Fusion Gate. "And since I doubt you know about Yami, I'll tell you what it does: First, it boosts the attack and defense of all Fiend and Spellcaster type monsters by 200 points. And it has the exact opposite effect on fairy types! Next, I sacrifice Blast Magician for the Chaos Command Magician with an attack of 2600 thanks to Yami’s field spell boost! Don’t be fooled by his strength, either! His special ability is about to throw some discord into your strategy! You see, monster card effects that target him are automatically negated! And you're wide open, Jaiden! ATTACK HIM DIRECTLY, CHAOS COMMAND MAGICIAN! USE YOUR CHAOS BLAST!" The magician then fired a magical energy wave directly at Jaiden. He yelled in pain as the blast hit him. He was now down to 5,400 life points! And Matthias was still at full!

"To finish my turn, I set two cards face down. Now quit holding back and show me what you're made of!" Matthias snarled. "I don't like wasting my time!"

"Fine!" Jaiden said drawing his card.

"You can still win, Jaiden!" Syrus said.

"Please!" Korben said. "He's already lost!"

"Says who?!" Chumley snapped.

"Says the stats!" Kaiba said as he walked down the pier from the crowd. "Jaiden's duel level is only two stars: Matthias's is seven. And the current standings are glaringly obvious. Jaiden lost this before it even began.”

"I'm not giving up!" Jaiden said. "I summon Elemental Hero Bubbleman in attack mode! And since he's the only one on the field, I get to draw two cards! Next I activate polymerization..."

"I don't think so!" Matthias cut him off. "Reveal! Cursed seal of the forbidden spell! I discard one card from my hand to negate Polymerization, and you cannot use it for the rest of the duel!" Everyone was shocked. Jaiden couldn't use his fusions anymore! Period!

"I... I throw down two face downs. That's all..."

"Pathetic!" Matthias sighed in disgust, drawing his card. "But then again, It's not like I should expect more from a wannabe Slifer red with a two-star ranking. I guess it's time to take out the garbage! I summon the SKILLED DARK MAGICIAN! And I also activate one of my face-downs, a spell card! Magical Dimension! This card allows me to special summon a high level Spellcaster, by sacrificing one lower one from the field! And I get to destroy your Bubbleman by this effect as well! Now, I sacrifice Skilled Dark Magician to destroy your Bubbleman, and to bring forth the monster that will seal this duel! COME FORTH, DARK MAGICIAN!" And as Bubbleman was eradicated, the Dark Magician appeared. This was a different variety than Yugi’s well-known magician: It wore midnight blue robes rather than royal purple, and it’s skin was bluish-pale! It also seemed as if it was staring down Jaiden! With the same distrust as Matthias had! It was almost if it wanted to get rid of Jaiden, just as Matthias did!

"Next, I'll lay down three cards, and activate another face-down spell, Mage Power!" Matthias said. "And if you paid attention in any of your classes, you would know what this does. It adds 500 Attack Points per spell or trap card on my field to any monster I choose! And I equip it to Dark Magician! And thanks to Yami, he gets 200 more attack points! Next, I’ll get rid of your traps if you have any! I activate from my hand the Dark Magic Attack spell card, which destroys all your face-down magic and trap cards on the field!” The spell the flew from Matthias’ side of the field, wiping away Jaiden’s face-down cards! His only defenses left! “I now lay down one last face done card."

"WOAH!" Joey said. "That's a total of 7,100 points combining both monsters! And he still has that Chaos Command Magician!"

"And they're all aimed at you, Jaiden Yuki!” Matthias smirked. “ATTACK HIM DIRECTLY, COMMAND MAGICIAN!" Jaiden braced himself for the attack. It hit him with great force!

"And now you're as good as done!” Matthias said with a glare.”FINISH IT, DARK MAGICIAN! ATTACK HIS LIFE POINTS! DARK MAGIC ATTACK!"

The Dark Magician closed in on Jaiden, unleashing it's devastating attack. Jaiden was hit by it head-on! It sent him sliding backwards several feet, as his life point meter hit dead zero. He had lost.

"Hmph! It's obvious now that you need to study more..." Matthias said. He then deactivated his duel disk and began to walk away.

"Wait!" Yugi ran up to Matthias.

"Yes, Yugi?" Matthias asked.

"Why did you do that?" Yugi asked. "What did he do to you to deserve that?"

"I have my reasons. Please don’t ask me to explain, because I won’t." Matthias said bluntly. With that, walked off to the main building.

“Seems someone’s pissed off that Jaiden beat your old deck, Yuge...” Joey said.

Zane had watched the duel from a distance. He couldn't believe the cruelty and harsh reality that Matthias made Jaiden bear witness to. He didn't know this duelist' background other than from news reports, but from watching, he knew he was colder than he seemed.

"Wow, that guy's good. He didn't even try!" Zane thought out loud.

"Oh, thanks for the support, Zane, that's really helpful!" Syrus said.

"It's no biggie," Jaiden said. "I was happy to fight someone strong..."

Matthias then stopped walking and turned to face Jaiden. "I'd show you more butt-whoop now, but scumbags like you aren't really worth my time." Matthias then resumed walking away. "Come on, guys, we need to sign up." He motioned to his friends.

"Hey, bro! I'm just..."

"I'm not you're 'bro' ok?" Matthias snarled getting in Jaiden's face. "If you call me 'bro' again, you'll be in for a lot of pain! Got it?!"

There was a sacred like silence.

"What is your problem?" Jaiden demanded.

"You're the problem!" Matthias snarled. "You're a disgrace to duelists everywhere! Nothing but a lucky loser! I would've had a better challenge playing solitaire, or even Uno for that matter!"

"...Then wait for the tournament! I'll show you there's more to my wins than luck!" Jaiden said.

"Sure..." Matthias then walked away, rolling his eyes, his friends following.

"Man, that guy has a serious attitude problem..." Joey said.

"...But why did he do that?" Yugi puzzled. Then, he saw a gold glimmer underneath Matthias's jacket. It looked like a millennium item! Could it be?

Unknown to Yugi, Matthias,'s nephew, Damion, and his friend Kevin, were also on the island. Waiting in the main hall for Matthias and his group.

"You're here!" Damion said happily as Matthias and his friends arrived.

"Yeah, and you're early." Derek growled. "We were supposed to meet at exactly seven o' clock."

"Sorry we came too early. Little Dami here was impatient."

Kevin began.

"It's no biggie..." Alex said.

"Of course, It's a biggie!" Derek snapped. "Did you not learn anything from the media coverage of Duelist Kingdom or Battle City-"

"Put a sock in it!" Matthias smacked Derek across the back of the head. "No crazy kidnappers or psychopaths haven't struck yet, have they?!"

"...No." Derek Grumbled, rubbing his head.

"Yeah. So, chill out. I came here to expose Jaiden Yuki for the fraud that he is and rocket us to the pro leagues, not to worry about a bunch of crazies skulking around that probably aren’t even there!" Matthias said as he and his friends finished filling out their entry forms.

“You assume too much, Matthias." Derek said. “Not to mention you are letting your narrow vision of the final prize cloud your judgment...”

"Derek, don't start." Matthias warned.

The tournament had progressed through many matches. It was down to the final.

"Final match! Jaiden Yuki Vs Matthias Cruz! Competitors, report to the arena!"

"Looks like you're up." Derek said.

"I believe you’ve been looking forward to this..." Alex laughed.

"It doesn't matter..." Matthias growled. "As long as he doesn't get the chance to duel Yugi and fall by my hand, I will be satisfied..."

"Does that even matter?" Alex laughed. "He's just a guy that likes to duel. Besides, Matt, you got to cut him some slack, he isn't all that bad..."

“…And for the last damn time: I don’t care!” Matthias said.

"LAST CALL! MATTHIAS CRUZ, REPORT TO THE ARENA!" The announcer said.

"It’s time…” Matthias said as he walked off.

The duel area was lit up with many lights, surrounded by aisles of seats filled to the brim with duel fans. Jaiden was confidently standing at the other side of the arena, his duel disk and hand ready when Matthias arrived. But when Jaiden saw Matthias, his confidence vanished, replaced by fear. If Matthias's duel stars were truly seven, what was he really capable of?

“I’ve been looking forward to this moment…" Matthias leered Jaiden. "I hope you’re ready for this."

"I... Of course I'm ready!" Jaiden tried to hide his fear.

“Don’t even bother trying to hide your fear, fake king!” Matthias activated his duel disk. Jaiden then noticed it was the same type of duel disk that was used in Battle City, upgraded by using kits sold by KaibaCorp! “Duel to your maximum extent, Jaiden, so I can crush you with totality and wipe the slate clean!”

“I will go first!” Matthias drew a card. “I summon the Skilled Dark Magician, and activate the field spell, Magic Citadel of Endymion! Now, I can collect spell counters from all spell cards put into play! It also gives Skilled Dark a spell counter, since he gains one every time a spell is played. I end with two facedown cards.”

Jaiden drew his card. “I activate Polymerization…”

“No you don’t!” Matthias corrected. “I activate the Cursed seal of the Forbidden spell in response! Polymerization is removed from play, and other copies cannot be used! By the way, thanks for another spell counter for Skilled Dark Magician and the Citadel!”

Jaiden quickly adapted. "I can still summon normal monsters! I summon Elemental Hero Sparkman, and equip him with the Spark Blaster, and activate the Banner of Courage! Now I can change the battle position of a monster on your field, specifically your Skilled Dark!"

"Again, thanks for another two spell counters. Is that all?" Matthias asked, losing his patience.

"Not quite! Now I will attack! And thanks to Banner of Courage, I get 200 extra attack points during the battle phase! Sparkman, use your shining surge flash!"

"Well, thank you, Jaiden, and not just for the spell counters!" Matthias smiled. "Reveal trap! Draining Shield! Your attack is negated, and I gain life points equal to your monster's attack power, so basically you just gave me 1800 life points on a silver platter!" The shield then appeared, absorbed the surge blast, and diverted the energy to Matthias's life points.

"So, is that all you're gonna do?" Matthias asked.

"...Yes." Jaiden finally said.

"Thought so." Matthias drew his card. "I set one more card face-down and activate Skilled Dark Magician’s ability! By sacrificing him with three counters, I can special summon Dark Magician from my deck or hand! I also summon the Blast Magician, and equip him with the Black Pendant Spell Card, which of course gives me another counter for the Magical Citadel, along with Blast Magician for his ability as well! So, now Blast Magician now has an attack of 2200! Blast Magician, attack! Give Sparkman a blasting burn he won’t forget!”

Sparkman was then enveloped in an explosive flaming ball of fire launched by the Blast Magician.

Yuig couldn't take his eyes off this duel! He didn't fully understand why Matthias was dueling with such hatred and determination, with a burning passion for the cards, and much more. But he did know a lot about the game and was using his deck to the full advantage. This duel was also reminding Yugi of Atem, the Pharoh. His friend that he truly missed. Unfortunately, his thoughts were interrupted.

"Excuse me, may we sit here? We had a bit of a hold-up with our seat tickets..." Three strangers motioned to the empty seats by Yugi and Joey.

"Uhh... Sure." Yugi said. They then sat down. The first one was taller than Kaiba's tallest body guard! He was also wearing a strange mask, making his head look like a jackal's. He looked a lot more muscular and stronger than Kaiba's body guard, too! Heck, the guy was even a foot taller than Kemo, maybe even two! Not a guy you would want to meet in a dark alley! He was dressed in robes and silken pants, with a cloak, all of them colored dark as night. Even though his cloak could cover them, he left his arms and chest exposed. He also was wearing gold wristbands, and golden collar.

The second, however, had a leaner figure than the first, about two and a half feet shorter than him. He was wearing a mask that resembled a falcon, one of the eyes replaced by a blood-red ruby, his crimson robes shrouding him in mystery. He also wore gold jewelry, just like the first.

The third figure was the shortest in the group, yet he was taller than Yugi. He had a large, royal blue cloak, which covered his appearance. His figure looked very familiar. The thing that was noticed, however, was the object hanging around his neck: The Millenium Puzzle itself! Was it Atem?

"It's been a long, time, Yugi." The figure in the blue cloak said. He took off his hood. If there was any other doubt in Yugi's mind, it was crushed by the man's face. It was the Pharoh, Atem!

"...Atem!" Yugi was stunned, as was Joey. But who were the other two? Yugi got up the courage to ask as he wiped tears away from his eyes, holding in the sobs. "...How did you get here, and who are they?"

"...They came with me to observe and try to prevent the prophecy of Set." The one with the jackal mask said. "I am Anubis, keeper and god of the dead, guardian of the underworld." He then took off his mask. The harsh, stone-like face, the dark hazel eyes, the long locks of golden-blonde hair... It was no joke! That was Anubis!

"...What are you doing here? What is _he_ doing here?!" Joey Wheeler hissed at the one with the falcon mask.

"Like he said, we're here to stop the prophecy. Though I don't understand how you can stop something destined to happen." The falcon-masked one took off his mask. He had short, spiky red hair aside from the back of his head, which had a long, braided ponytail. The man had dark green eyes, piercing, like a hawk's. "I am Horus, the god of justice, executor of vengeance."

Yugi was afraid, though he didn't show it. Anubis and Horus, however, clearly sensed the boy's fear.

"Need a change of pants, boy?" Anubis snickered. "You'll need a lot more than that, I'm afraid..."

"Quit trying to give them a heart attack, and focus on the game, Anubis!" Horus snapped, pointing to the arena. "If it's true and he does summon the.…" The arena was then engulfed by a large explosion from one of Jaiden’s monsters.

"ENOUGH!" Matthias yelled in the arena as Jaiden decimated his Dark Magician. "I'VE COME TOO FAR TO FAIL! YOU SHALL NOT DEFEAT ME, JAIDEN YUKI! I WILL NOT BE BEATEN BY A TWO-STAR, LAZY, SECOND-RATE PIECE OF TRASH!! IT'S TIME TO SUMMON THE BEAST THAT WILL FINISH THIS!” Matthias drew his next card, whipping it from the top of his deck with aggression! “I ACTIVATE MY TRAP! DNA SURGERY, AND USE IT TO CHANGE ALL MONSTERS ON THE FIELD TO THE MACHINE-TYPE! NEXT, I ACTIVATE THE SPELL CARD POWER BOND! NOW I CAN COMBINE THE BLUE EYES WHITE DRAGON ON THE FIELD WITH THE CYBER DRAGON IN MY HAND! COME FORTH, BLUE EYES CYBER DRAGON!!!"

Matthias held his Power Bond spell card high in the air, as it activated, his face more serious than ever. Immediately, there was a blinding vortex of light, wind whipping through the arena. Then, Matthias's ultimate monster appeared. The Blue Eyes Cyber Dragon made a loud battle roar, practically shaking the arena to its foundation! It's cold, steel armor glistening in the light, It's cold blue eyes ablaze like wildfire!

"Just to let you know, Jaiden, my Blue Eyes Cyber Dragon starts off with an attack of 5,000, while you're Tempest has only 2,800!" Matthias snarled. "And don't forget his ability, which I shall educate you on: He gains 600 Attack points for every lever 5 or higher monster in my graveyard! Now, since you've destroyed some of my most powerful cards; Chaos Command Magician, Chaos Sorcerer, Dark Red Enchanter, Endymion the Master Magician, The Sorcerer of Dark Magic, Dark Eradicator Warlock, and Dark Magician, and since now both my dragons I used to summon Blue Eyes Cyber Dragon are now in the graveyard, my mighty cybernetic beast gets a 5,400 point boost, and thanks to Power Bond, his attack is doubled! That makes a grand total of 15,800 Attack points!"

“Someone tell me that attack meter’s off...” Joey said in the crowd, nervous.

"Your forgetting one thing!" Jaiden smiled. "Tempest can't be destroyed in battle! And right now, he's in Defense Mode, so my life points are safe! You on the other hand, left yourself open due to Power Bond’s nasty side-effect! In one turn, Blue Eyes Cyber Dragon will be destroyed, and will wipe out the rest of your life points!"

"Who says I need to destroy Tempest?" Matthias said. "For you are judging my dragon too soon. You see, he has another special ability: If I discard three cards from the top of my deck straight to the graveyard, my dragon can attack your life points directly!"

And that's exactly what Matthias was going to do. Jaiden couldn't believe it! He had no spell or traps to stop it!

"No! Wait!" Jaiden began. But it was too late. Matthias had discarded his three cards… sealing the duel, and the events to come.

"Consider this a message from a real champion, Jaiden! YOU LOSE!!!!" Matthias yelled. "BLUE EYES CYBER DRAGON, ATTACK JAIDEN DIRECTLY! STRIDENT BURST-STREAM PARTICLE NEUTRON BLAST!!!"

The Blue eyes Cyber Dragon then launched it's deadly attack. Flaming lightning bolts that the dragon spat out in a torrent from it’s maw rained across the arena, striking Jaiden with deadly accuracy, engulfing him as he cried out in pain. The power of Matthias's dragon clearly had overloaded the safeties on the duel disk system! Jaiden's duel blazer was heavily singed, his shirt nearly in the same condition. When the lightning stopped, his duel disk overloaded, exploding! All his cards were scattered, some burning to ash. Jaiden, burns and all, collapsed on his knees, tears in his eyes. He had not only lost: He had been completely humiliated! Crushed...

“… I don’t belive it!” Dr. Crowler gasped in shock. “Somebody beat him! At long last, somebody has beaten him!”

“Jaiden!” Syrus ran forward, followed by Tyranno, Jessie, and Aster Phoenix.

“No… I’ve lost.” Jaiden said, tears streaming from his eyes.

“Yeah, you have.” Matthias said, staring down Jaiden with a scowl. “This time, you’ve lost more than just the duel, I’m afraid. Though to be blunt, you should have seen this coming. Unofficial or not, beating Yugi’s deck put a bullseye on your back that left you open for a challenge from the entire world...”

But that was the least of their worries.

At that moment, an explosion flared in the arena right next to Jaiden. It threw him and his friends in all directions. The explosion also started a fire, which began to generate a giant cloud of smoke, and threw a materialized Yubel into the stands. The fire spread throughout the arena, setting off the alarms.

"What the..." Kaiba coughed. Even Matthias was surprised by this. People began to evacuate the arena as it burst into flames. Anubis, Atem, and Horus, however, knew exactly what was going on.

Set had arrived.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"Jaiden!" Syrus choked on the smoke. "Where are you?" He, Jessie, Aster, and Tyranno wandered through the haze looking for their friend, knowing he was in danger

“Jaiden! Where are you?!” Tyranno cried out. “Say something!”

However, they didn't know how much danger he really was in.

Jaiden was now face to face with Set, the Egyptian god of chaos, guardian of the red desert.

"A pleasure to meet you at last, Jaiden Yuki..." Set smiled, hiding his true intent.

"Just go away..." Jaiden looked away. "I'm not even a duelist anymore. I doubt I ever was..."

"Not true, Jaiden." Set reassured, getting on one knee and placing a powerful hand on his shoulder. "You are an excellent duelist, and a supreme king in your own right as well. You were just... Misplaced. Just as true talent always is."

"But my deck..."

"That wasn't your true deck, child. It was merely a tool you trained with. I, however, possess your true deck..."

Set then reached into his gray-colored robes, and held out his hand, a deck of duel monster cards in his palm.

“I can help you unlock your potential, and claim your place in history as a true champion. You however, need to make the choice. I cannot make it for you...”

"Horus! Have you found him?!" Anubis demanded.

"I have, but I can't get to him! Set has isolated him and the child behind a dimensional wall!" Horus kept trying to break though, his efforts futile.

"What the heck is going on?!" Kaiba demanded.

"For once we agree on something, Kaiba." Matthias stepped forward. "What is going on, Jackal-Mask Robes?"

"Fool!" Anubis growled, leering Matthias, trying to break the barrier with his magic. "You may have started the next apocalypse!"

A blinding light flashed, followed by another explosion, knocking them all back! Matthias and Kaiba were sent sliding back across the area on their feet!

Standing in the smoke of the explosion, was Jaiden. He was now wearing a blood-red overcoat, his duel disk repaired to perfection with new cards! What was shocking, however, was his face! He had Egyptian hieroglyphics on his right cheek, and his eyes had lost their bright enthusiastic luster. Now, they were spheres of darkness, cold and numb to any emotion. Jaiden also now had streaks of shiny silver highlights in his hair! The smile he wore was devious with intent.

"Well, champ? What do you think of me now?" Jaiden laughed. "As they say, you can't keep a good duelist down..."

Matthias was clearly annoyed. "Okay, Jaiden. Here's what I think: 1: You're now a freak show, and 2: you were never a 'good duelist'. You couldn't even master a decent card combo if you tried."

Jaiden laughed, holding up a card. "Really? It sounds to me like your jealous... Well then, maybe I should show you one of my new friends! ELEMENTAL CHAOS GUARDIAN AVIEN! I SUMMON YOU!" There was a blinding flash of light as Jaiden slapped the card onto his now-activated duel disk, and the new Avien was standing in the arena. However, this wasn't the hero everyone had expected. Avien was now Black, his feathers colored a bright crimson. He had also bulked up, gotten a vampire-pale complexion, and his talons looked like they could crush solid steel, which he demonstrated by picking up a steel beam, and snapping it in half like a twig!  
“Holy crap!” Joey exclaimed. “That thing is real?!”

"The shoe's on the other foot now, eh Mattie?" Jaiden snapped his fingers. "Sick 'em Avien!"

Avien then charged for Matthias, claws extended. Matthias, in response, held up three cards from his deck.

"GO! MAGICAL DIMENSION!!" There was immediately another flash of light, and Matthias's Dark Magician appeared. It blocked Avien's attack and throwing the beast into the wall in which Avien left an indent, also showing that it was real!

"What?! Impossible!" Jaiden was dumbstruck.

"You're not the only one who can manipulate shadow magic, Jaiden!" Matthias smiled, an Egyptian eye symbol glowing on his forehead. "I don’t know how you managed such a feat, but personally, you don't deserve it! Oh, and Avian's now history, thanks to Magical Dimesion’s effect!"

Avien was then surrounded by an aura. It howled, as the aura vaporized him.

"Now, to finish this for good!" Matthias leered Jaiden with rage. "DARK MAGICIAN, _FINISH IT!!!_ _DARK MAGIC ATTACK!!!_ "

"NO!!" Syrus then jumped in the way. Matthias immediately waved his magician off. It canceled its attack.

"Jaiden! What's going on?" Syrus asked. "This isn't like you!"

"I've been reborn, Syrus." Jaiden smiled. "Reborn, thanks to a new friend..." Set then stepped out of the smoke and shadows, making himself known to all.

Anubis was infuriated. "SET~!!!!!! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO THAT YOUNG MAN?!!!" He roared.

"It was his choice to accept the new deck, Anubis." Set snickered. "He wanted to use his talent to its fullest..."

"Hey, it's true, Anub." Jaiden shrugged his shoulders. "I chose to take my new deck, I wasn’t forced. I wanted to do better, fully unlock my potential… Show to the world that I have more than enough of what it takes to be a true champion, and a modern king of games."

"Unfortunately, we don't have time to stick around, Anubis." Set said. "Jaiden has the world to take by storm, and demonstrate his skill and power..."

They then vanished in a flash of light. Anubis tried to get to them but failed.

Anubis was completely enraged. So enraged, he was shifting to his true form: A human-like jackal. He turned around, teeth bared, leering Matthias, his eyes ablaze, pointing at him.

"YOU!!!!!!" His voice thundered in the Arena.

"....Oh, You got to be kidding me-" Matthias didn't even get to finish his sentence as Anubis rushed him, slamming him into the wall.

"Ow! Hey!" Matthias snapped. "Watch it!"

"Mortal, do you have any Idea WHAT YOU HAVE DONE?!?!" Anubis snapped.

"What the... All I did was whip a wannabe card-shark into next week!" Matthias said. "Wait a sec... Alex!"

"What did I do now?" Alex snapped.

"You didn't tell me the whole story behind the pendant, did you?" Matthias leered Alex. "Holy crap, ALEX, I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU!!!!!" He yelled. "This is so TYPICAL!"

"...What pendant?" Anubis narrowed his eyes. He reached inside Matthias's jacket, retrieving it from a pocket. It was a Pyramid-shaped crystal and gold pendant! "I should have gathered you had a Pyramid Of Light. How else could you have summoned a real monster?"

"Hey! Give that back!" Matthias grabbed for the pendant, Anubis holding it just out of his reach, looking it over.

"How did you get this, boy?" He asked.

"It's a family heirloom, if you must know!" Matthias answered. "My ancestral great-great-grandfather found it on one of his expeditions in Egypt! He was an archaeologist!"

"Horus, why did you have to hide _it_ along with all the millennium items _in_ Egypt?" Anubis asked. "Wait, no, never mind! I don't want another one of your excuses. You probably got so sloppy as to store all of them in a single tomb... Anyways, you say your ancestor found it? You mean Antonio Cruz?"

"Yeah!" Matthias snapped. "Now give it back!"

"I had Shadi give him this Item, boy. He was to be it’s guardian, for safe-keeping... Tell me, just how much do you know about this thing?”

“I know it’s from Egypt, and that it was used in rituals called Shadow Games in which the Duel Monsters card game is based off of! I also know enough to use some of it’s magic, not that it’s any of your business!” Matthias snapped.

"So that's why you didn't let me duel Jaiden!" Yugi said.

"I should have known something was up..." Alex sighed, feigning innocence.

"Well, you should have explained in more detail about the damn PROPHECY, YOU NITWIT!!!!" Matthias yelled.

“Oh, don’t even start Matthias!” Alex said flatly. “I tried to warn you, but did you listen? Nooo~ you were too busy with your obsession on beating Jaiden in this tournament and catapulting yourself to the big leagues with all of us in tow!”

This caught Anubis's attention. He let go of Matthias, letting him drop to the ground on his rear with a thud.

"Brother, bring that boy here." Anubis told Horus, who gladly dragged Alex over to him.

"So, you know how to read Egyptian?" Anubis asked. "Where did you learn to read the language, boy?"

Alex looked up as if in thought. "In a black market library..."

"This is not the time for humor, you dolt!" Matthias snarled.

"Well, if you must know, a man in a cloak gave me this while I was in Cairo, accompanying Matthias on a trip." Alex then pulled out the Dagger of Fate from under his overcoat, the blade inscribed with hieroglyphs. "Ever since then, I've been able to read the hieroglyphics. Got anything more to ask of me?"

"As a matter of fact, I do." Anubis said. "Of both of you, and your friends." He then turned his attention to Matthias, spawning a chain to go with the pendant. He then placed the pendant around Matthias's neck via telekinesis.

"I now pass my judgment on you, Matthias Cruz." Anubis said, as he spawned a tattoo of the millennium symbol on the boy's hand. "Until you find Jaiden Yuki, stop my father, and seal him away, you shall bear this marking, this curse. You shall never die, never age, never rest, never even sleep until this task is complete." And with that, he let go of Matthias, grabbing up Alex by the collar.

"I also pass my Judgment on you, Alexander Everstone!" Anubis then gave him a tattoo on his hand as well. "You shall aid Matthias in his task, and not rest, age,sleep, or die until he completes it!" He then put Alex down on the ground, turning to the rest of Matthia’s friends, spawning the same symbol on their hands! “...All of you shall bear this curse! None of you shall rest, age, sleep, or die until Set is stopped, sealed away, and Jaiden Yuki is free! Let it be written!”

"Great, now I'm cursed. Smooth move, Alex..." Matthias said.

“Oh, quit your bitchin’! You’re not the only one…” Alex replied.

"Well, what do we do now?" Yugi asked.

"We kick Set’s butt and get Jaiden out of his claws, that's what Yuge!" Joey held up a fist.

“That’s a no brainer, Sherlock Holmes.” Matthias said. “Me and Alex need to seal Set away, if we’re ever going to get a good night’s sleep again.”

“How hard could it be?” Joey asked, brimming with confidence.

"A lot harder than you think, Joseph." A voice said behind him. Everyone turned to see Marik! “Set is the keeper of chaos, and a divine being. It won’t be easy to take him down.”

"Well, at least he didn't get these." Alex then pulled out three cards out of his pocket. The Egyptian God cards! "Can you tell if these are the real deal, Anubis?"

Anubis examined the cards, then stood there stunned. "Those are the "real deal" child…" He then gave the god cards to Atem. “Pharaoh, take these. For safe keeping, and for your use should you need them.”


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Matthias facepalmed. “Is there any more good news?”

“Hardly.” Marik replied. “We’re just going to have to figure out what he plans to do from here.”

Atem frowned, putting the God Cards into his deck. “Knowing Set, he may have Jaiden issue followers of his own. That would prevent us from getting to him without going through them first.”

That’s when it clicked! Matthias ran back to the evacuation point of the stadium.

“Woah! Where are you going?” Joey demanded.

“We may be too late!” Matthias yelled in panic. “He’s going after his own friends! He plans to form his own little court of power!”

The others ran after him. They quickly came up onto the docks. Sure enough, Jaiden was there, as was his friends from Duel Academy. He had put up a wall of fire between the boat and the evacuees, preventing them from escaping as he stood on top of a set of large crates, overlooking the crowd!

“Well?” Jaiden asked Syrus and company. “Who’s willing to join me in my quest? Just think: All will be right with the world again! There will be no more injustice, no more suffering… Best of all, you will be on the winning side, and go down in history as champions! Besides, you do trust me, don’t you?”

“Oh, shut up!” Matthias snapped. “It’s all honey and lies! Don’t you see that?! He’s conning you! You guys are insane and beyond redemption if you accept his offer!”

Jaiden smirked. “Really? That coming from the one who caused this to happen in the first place? Your credibility is sketchy at best, Matthias. After all, you’re the one who made the move. You summoned the Blue-Eyes Cyber Dragon in our duel and used it against me. Therefore, you are the one responsible for bringing forth Set in the first place! Which I should be thanking you for, to be honest. It makes perfect sense when you think about it.”

Syrus, Chumley, Alastair, Jessie, Alexis and the others looked back and forth, confused as of which side to take.   
“Please, think about it guys.” Jaiden said, holding out his hand. “Syrus, who would you trust at a time like this? A friend you’ve known through thick and thin since you got here? Or a complete stranger, filled with jealous envy, hypocritical accusations and a lust for power?”

Matthias glared at Jaiden, his eyes ablaze with a red glow as he was engulfed in a dark aura, the eye symbol glowing on his forehead again. “Watch the words that fall from your mouth, Jaiden Yuki!” He snapped, pointing his finger at Jaiden. “You may have been given some power by Set, but that doesn’t automatically give you the title of lord over all things! You are still mortal, and have yet to prove your skill, so don’t you forget it!”

Syrus looked to Matthias, then to Jaiden. “…He has some good points.” Syrus spoke. “I would trust those I’ve known, and helped through hard times, as well as those who helped me in return. Putting your faith in a complete unknown is a bad idea, in my opinion… Jaiden, I’m accepting your offer.” He reached for Jaiden’s hand.

“Syrus, no!” Matthias started to run forward to stop Syrus.

“Matthias, wait!” Atem called out. But it was too late. Jaiden had taken his hand, and enveloped them both in a brightly lit electric field as Syrus let out a yell and the field threw Matthias back!

“That’s… not normal.” Seto Kaiba said, eyes wide.

After a few moments, the field changed into a bright light, then it faded. Syrus stood there with Jaiden, only now he had the same Heiroglyphic symbols on his face as Jaiden, as well as wearing a fancy two-tone academy jacket, colored red and blue.

“You’ve made the right choice, Syrus.” Jaiden smiled. “Welcome to my circle.”

Syrus looked up to Jaiden, smiling. “Thank you for opening my mind to the situation. It’s clear now what’s going on, and what must be done.” He turned to the rest of Jaiden’s group. “I know all of you are scared, but soon you will have to take sides. Do yourselves a favor and choose the right one.”

Matthias completely lost it after those words. He ran up to Jaiden, jumping through the air as the aura around his body became electric, tackling Jaiden off the crates!

“You rotten, lying _sack of shit!!_ ” Matthias yelled in rage, picking up Jaiden by the neck with a tight grip, leaving Set’s new ally struggling for air. “Now you have gone _too far_ with your slander and scheming!!!”

“Temper temper, champ… You’re only helping me in the long run…” Jaiden wheezed out a laugh.

“Jaiden!” Syrus exclaimed, summoning a Cyber Dragon to try and protect his friend! “Cyber Dragon! Turn Matthias into mince-meat!”

Unfortunately, it got ensnared by a magic card Alex activated: Swords of Revealing Light!

“Try and make another move on my friend, I dare you!” Alex said, holding a card in his hand at the ready, his Gagagigo monster at his side equipped with the Sword of Deep-Seated and the Black Pendant. “Go on, Truesdale! Make my day!”

“...Looks like great minds think alike, eh Matthias?” Jaiden continued to taunt. “After all, got to get through the pawns to checkmate the king...”

Matthias’ temperament was eviscerated by that point like the blast of a nuclear warhead burning sheets of paper in the wind. He ripped out a switchblade from his jacket, flipping out the blade and held it to Jaiden’s neck, right next to his jugular with a red-eyed glare.

The next words Matthias spoke sent everyone’s tension into overdrive, his voice laced with a demonic, enraged reverb:  
“ _I_ _AM GOING_ _TO KILL YOU_ _!!!”_ Matthias screamed, his voice carrying on the wind.


End file.
